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Program overvew

The Ph.D. program is for students interested in obtaining academic or research positions in colleges and universities or in government and commercial research laboratories. The program gives students a rigorous and thorough knowledge of a broad range of theoretical and practical research subject areas, and develops the ability to recognize and pursue significant research in computer science. Practically all students in the PhD program are supported as teaching assistants in the first year followed by a research assistantship on funded projects thereafter.

Contents

Core Area: Theory:

Analysis of Algorithms

Theory of Computation

Logic in Computer Science

Discrete Mathematics

Core Area: Software:

Compiler Design

Principles Programming Languages

Theory of Database Systems

Artificial Intelligence

​Core Area: Systems:

Computer Architecture

Operating Systems

Fundamentals of Computer Networks

Computer Graphics

Elective Area:

Introduction to Computer Vision

Computing with Logic

Asynchronous Systems

Network Security

Computer System Security

Computational Biology

Visualization

Machine Learning

Pd.D Teaching and Research Experience

Practicum in Teaching

Ph.D. Internship in Research

Ph.D. Dissertation Research

Dissertation Research off Campus - International students

Ph.D. students must take a total of at least five courses from the above areas. At most one course can be included from the Elective area. At least four courses must be from the Core areas and there must be at least one course from each of the three Core areas. Minimum passing grade for a qualifier course is A-. A student who fails to secure a passing grade will have to take another course not taken before, in the following semester. All qualifier courses must be completed within the first three semesters. We recommend students take at least two courses per semester, because most graduate courses are offered only once a year. No course substitutions, exchanges, or pleas for better grades will be accepted.

Requirements

USA requirements for international students

Each university in the Unites States of America sets its own admission standards so there isn't the same criteria for all the students and the university can decide which applicants meet those standards. The fee for each application is between $35 to $100.

After the selections of the universities you want to attend, the best of all would be to contact each university for an application form and more admission information for the international students. Moreover, for a graduate or postgraduate program it's necessary to verify the admission requirements. Some programs require that you send your application directly to their department.

Admissions decisions are based on students's academic record and different test scores, such as TOEFL, the SAT or ACT (for undergraduate programs) and GRE or GMAT (for graduate programs). Admission decision is based on your academic results and motivation.

University requirements

Program requirements

A statement of purpose, describing your interests and motivation to pursue a graduate degree.

A resume or CV, describing your work experience, academic projects, and areas of expertise.

Three recommendation letters from academia or industry. All recommendation letters should be submitted online. Especially for Ph.D. applicants, we recommend that a majority of the letters be from academia.

Scanned transcripts. Please make sure these are legible or your application will not be reviewed.

Test scores. Please have ETS send your official GRE scores to Stony Brook University (Institution code: 2548). In addition, if your native language is not English, you need to report TOEFL or IELTS scores.

Funding

The Ph.D. program is intended for students who wish to pursue a research-oriented career. Admission to this program is highly competitive, and the applicants must have the intention of completing the program. All students admitted on a full-time basis to the Ph.D. program are offered attractive financial support in the form of teaching or research assistantships and fellowships, together with tuition waivers.